Revisiting the nutritional and functional value and health-promoting potential of Syzygium species

Syzygium species are consumed worldwide, and their edible conventional and unconventional parts contain nutrients and bioactive compounds with beneficial health effects. This review aims to summarize and discuss available information on the nutritional composition and presence of bioactive compounds in Syzygium species, highlighting their ability to promote beneficial health effects, considering studies published in the last 10 years and screened in the databases PubMed Scopus, and Web of Science. These studies show that different parts of Syzygium species (fruits, leaves, bark, and seeds) contain phenolic acids, flavonoids, tannins, carotenoids, saponins, dietary fiber, vitamins, and minerals capable of promoting health. The body of evidence gathered from in vitro and animal model experiments shows that several Syzygium species exert antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antihyperglycemic, hepatoprotective, and antibacterial properties. Syzygium species could be used to develop novel functionalized ingredients, food products, and nutraceuticals as strategies to stimulate their consumption, applicability, and valorization

Exploring the potential prebiotic effects of Opuntia dillenii (Ker Gawl). Haw (Cactaceae) cladodes on human intestinal microbiota

This study evaluated the physicochemical properties, antioxidant capacity, and potential prebiotic effects on the human intestinal microbiota of freeze-dried Opuntia dillenii (Ker Gawl). Haw] (Cactaceae) cladodes (FDOd). FDOd had high levels of total fiber (52.36 g/100 g), especially soluble fiber (33.36 g/100 g), as well as minerals, such as potassium (4415.49 mg/100 g), calcium (1593.25 mg/100 g), magnesium (853.55 mg/100 g), and phosphorus (209.04 mg/100 g), high total chlorophyll content (912.00 mg/100 g), presence of various phenolic compounds, such as catechin (41.00 mg/100 g), myricetin (785.00 mg/100 g), isorhamnetin (5.00 mg/100 g), rutin (42 mg/100 g), and antioxidant activity (ABTS•+: 0.51 µmol TEAC/g; DPPH•: 0.32 µmol TEAC/g; FRAP: 2.75 µmol FeSO4/g). Fermentation of FDOd using human fecal inoculum changed the composition and metabolic activity of intestinal microbiota, increasing the relative abundance of Ligilactobacillus (0.03 %–16.44 %), Lactiplantibacillus (0.00 %–1.11 %), and Agathobacter (1.80 %–4.23 %), and decreasing the relative abundance of Prevotella_9 (25.08 %–0.15 %) and Succinivibrio (24.77 %–1.54 %). FDOd influenced the metabolic profile of the intestinal microbiota with the production of various metabolites, including short- and medium-chain fatty acids, organic acids, essential amino acids, and other compound classes with health-promoting properties. The results indicate FDOd as a new ingredient with prebiotic properties in the human intestinal microbiota